Finally

It might be a bunch of hype, but GM says it's going to "dramatically" shift its focus away from big trucks and SUVs toward fuel-economy and hybrids.

This should have been done a long, long time ago. Why wasn't it? It wasn't that GM didn't have the technology to compete with Toyota - American cars tend to be more efficient per pound of weight than Japanese cars, they just weigh a bunch more. The explanation is demand. Gas in America has long been cheaper than gas in Europe, Japan, and other energy-importing nations that limit consumption with strict energy taxes. American consumers, flooded with cheap gasoline, demanded different products than the rest of the world, allowing the Japanese companies to take the lead in fuel economy while Detroit focused on the American market - a losing proposition in the long run.

(Why did America not choose to tax energy? Maybe it was because we thought that with our overwhelming military power we could always ensure ample supply. Just another case in which military power is more curse than blessing...)

Now that oil prices are shooting through the roof, the difference between energy prices in America and other countries isn't so big. And with demand skyrocketing in China and India, GM and Ford can't afford to focus on America anyway. If that news story is to be believed, and GM is finally getting the message, then watch out Japan.

And no matter what GM does, at least I'll be seeing less of those big annoying trucks on the road.